1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the art of handling of biopsy specimens, and in particular, to an apparatus, system, and method for processing biopsy specimens in preparation for analysis.
2. Description of the Related Art
Diagnosing many diseases, including cancer, requires histological analysis. Before such analysis can be performed, a biopsy is required. Biopsies are most commonly taken from the gastrointestinal tract, genitourinary tract, lung, soft tissue, and other organs. Once the tissue sample is taken, the physician places the tissue in a specimen container, typically filled with formalin. The specimen container, along with a request sheet with the patient identification and clinical information, is sent to the pathology laboratory for processing and analysis. After the container is received in the pathology laboratory, the specimen is accessioned in the pathology computer system and submitted for processing or “grossing.” The grossing process begins with matching the patient identifier on the container and the corresponding request sheet. The specimen is then taken out of the container, and is placed in a labeled specimen cassette. Depending on the tissue biopsied and the suspected disease, some biopsy samples comprise multiple fragments of tissue and are very small in size. Instead of being placed in a specimen cassette, these small samples are placed in a biopsy bag. The small tissue samples can become lodged on the surface of the various instruments and containers utilized during the grossing process, including the specimen container, biopsy bag, tissue forceps, cassette, pipette, and/or the surface of a laboratory table. Each step of the grossing process is performed by a pathology assistant or a pathology resident. Based on the necessity of a person for grossing, and further because most labs do not operate 24 hours per day, the turn-around time for histological analysis of biopsy samples can be lengthy.
The prior art system also presents substantial risks of error. In a typical pathology laboratory, on average, twenty-five biopsy samples are grossed per day. Because multiple samples may be grossed at the same time, there is a risk of mislabeling the biopsy containers, placing the biopsy samples in the wrong container, or mixing and thus contaminating the samples. The applicants have also observed that on-the-job training of pathology laboratory assistants can lead to these errors in grossing.
It would therefore be desirable to develop a biopsy pipette, biopsy test tube, biopsy bag, and biopsy cassette that are capable of being utilized in a biopsy specimen processing system that will ease the method of handling biopsy samples and reduce the risk of mix-ups in processing. It would also be desirable to develop a biopsy processing system that is automated to assist pathology laboratory personnel in performing the grossing of biopsy samples, which will decrease the turn-around time for analyzing the biopsy samples and thus improve patient care.